Week 1 Big South Opening Day (+1) Preview
Previewing every Big South teams opening game
Nov 3rd is finally upon us (well actually day before), and college basketball has finally returned, and luckily for us Big South fans, Eyes are on us first with the Field of 68 Marathon with Winthrop vs Queens. In total all but 1 Big South team begins their season on Nov 3rd, 7 of which against a D1 foe.
In this preview, I will give my thoughts on each game, keys for victory and a winner along with score prediction for all 9 Big South openers.
Season Openers (Nov 3rd and Nov 4th)
Nov 3rd - 8am EST - Queens vs Winthrop
The first game of the 2025-26 College Basketball season takes us to Rock Hill, but not to Winthrop Coliseum but instead to Rock Hill Sports and Event Center for the Field of 68 Marathon for a good mid major matchup with Winthrop and Queens.
Queens Breakdown: Queens whom was picked first in the ASUN preseason coaches poll, with 6 of the 12 first place votes returns their star from last season and ASUN Preseason Player of the Year this season Chris Ashby and budding sophomore Yoav Berman. Along with those returners Queens brought in star freshman Jordan Watford, and transfer big men Gus Larson and Carson Schwieger. One notable omission from content many might have read or seen in the preseason is the loss of Bryce Cash who stepped away from the school for personal reasons.
Winthrop Breakdown: Picked 3rd in the Big South preseason poll, Winthrop had to rebuild their roster after losing their two headed monster of a front court in Kelton Talford and KJ Doucet, along with losing senior guards Kasen Harrison and Nick Johnson. Luckily for Coach Prosser and the staff they had Tommy Kamarad and Logan Duncomb who both stuck around and really only needed to focus on the guard spots adding Kareem Rozier and Daylen Berry along with returning Isaiah Wilson, and bringing in a star freshman of their own in Kaleb Evans.
Game Breakdown: Talk about an amazing game to open the season, Winthrop being a stalwart of the Big South always seemingly in contention to win the conference facing an upstart Queens team entering their first season of tournament eligibility. Both teams have a real chance to win this one, but I do lean Winthrop simply because I believe slightly more in their talent, along with their ability to get up in front of what should be a slightly subdued but still Winthrop dominant crowd.
Game Prediction: Winthrop 81 - Queens 79
Nov 3rd - 6:30pm EST - Furman vs High Point
The Field of 68 Marathon, at least the Rock Hill part of the Marathon, is ended with an amazing Mid Major matchup between two teams with 2nd weekend NCAA Tournament hopes in Furman and High Point.
Furman Breakdown: Picked 2nd with 5 first place votes in the SoCon Coaches behind the NIT Champions from last season in Chattanooga, Furman has a really solid squad entering the season. Bob Richey was able to retain a good chunk of his roster with two of his returners earning Preseason All Conference Honors in Cooper Bowser and Tom House earning Preseason All-SoCon Honors along with returning Ben Vander Wal and Charles Johnston. Along with the returners, Furman added top freshman Alex Wilkins whom had A10 level offers along with Clemson transfer Asa Thomas.
High Point Breakdown: Picked to win the Big South with all but new coach, Flynn Clayman’s vote (as you couldn’t vote for yourself), High Point is looking to become back to back to back Big South Regular Seasons Champs, but more importantly back to back Big South Tournament Champs at seasons end. High Point has a decent amout of returners with Chase Johnston and Josh Ibukunoluwa along with Braden Hausen whom redshirted last season but High Point is headlined by star transfers Cam Fletcher, Owen Aquino along with Preseason All Big South First Teamers Scotty Washington and Rob Martin.
Game Breakdown: The game is probably one of the best matchups on opening night, even ranking 4th on the KenPom’s Fan Match metric. High Point and Furman are at least contenders to win their league and in High Point case, is the clear favorite and these two facing off gives us a real look to see if both teams can live up to that hype. Picking a winner is hard, but I do lean High Point simply because I like their depth more than Furman’s and down the stretch of a close game, you should always lean with who has more depth.
Official Prediction: High Point 86 - Furman 81
Nov 3rd - 7pm EST - Mary Baldwin at Longwood
The first of our non Field of 68 Marathon games, and our only Non D1 opener this season comes from Farmville, VA as Longwood and their new coach Ronnie Thomas debuts against Division 3 school, Mary Baldwin.
Longwood Breakdown: After losing longtime and successful coach Griff Aldrich, they turned the man one chair down, Ronnie Thomas to take over as their next coach. Along with the promotion of Ronnie, a lot will stay familiar with their roster as they return their two big men: Elijah Tucker and Johan Nziemi, along with guards Jaylen Benard, Emanuel Richards, and sharpshooter KJ McClurg.
Game Breakdown: Last year these two teams faced off for the first time in history, Longwood won that game 97-40 but a lot of things can change over just one season. Out of the 10 starters from both sides last season, only 4 are back for this contest. Despite the change in coaching for Longwood and roster turnover for both teams, the result should be the same with a Longwood win.
Game Prediction: Longwood 101 - Mary Baldwin 62
Nov 3rd - 7pm EST - Navy at Presbyterian
For the first time since the 2016-17 season, Presbyterian will open their season vs a fellow Division 1 opponent in the Templeton Center. In 2016-17, it ended up with Presbyterian beating Furman 73-71. This time it’s Navy, and Presbyterian is hoping for a little bit of Templeton magic as they look for a similar result.
Navy Breakdown: Ranked #1 in returning production by BartTorvik, mostly due to transfer rules for service academies. Navy should have an easy transfer of power between Ed DeChellis to Jon Perry after DeChellis retired this past offseason. Navy returns star guard Austin Benigni after averaging 17+ PPG the past two seasons, along with their block and rebounders leaders in Aidan Kehoe and Donovan Draper and their 2nd leading scorer from last season Jordan Pennick.
Presbyterian Breakdown: Coming off their best season since moving to Division 1, Coach Ferrell had some work to do after losing Kory Mincy to the portal, along with Kobe Stewart and Kaleb Scott to the pros after graduation but returned Johan Pierce after getting hurt during their MTE last season. Along with Johan, PC returned Carl Parrish, who almost finished as a 50-40-90 player and defensive stud Jaylen Peterson. This year PC did in fact hit the portal adding both Josh Pickett and Erik Taylor, both young players who should promise in their first seasons of college hoops.
Game Breakdown: Both of these are pretty even matched in my eyes, I do think KenPom and other have Navy a little too high and Presbyterian a little too low. With that being said, Chemistry is really big in these opening weeks. One team has a clear chemistry advantage and I don’t know if home court advantage negates that chemistry. So for that reason, I do have Navy in a close one.
Official Prediction: Navy 69 - Presbyterian 65
Nov 3rd - 7pm EST - Charleston Southern at Virginia Tech
Year Two (.5) for Saah Nimley as the head coach of Charleston Southern begins with a trip to Blacksburg, Virginia to face (near) hometown coach Mike Young and his Virginia Tech team. Charleston Southern enters this game with 7 losses coming by the way of Virginia Tech, but the most recent game, only decided by 5 points. Can Charleston Southern get the first big upset of the college basketball season?
Virginia Tech Breakdown: Entering Year 7 of the Mike Young era, where the seat might be as hot as ever. Virginia Tech added Izaiah Pasha from Delaware who helped carry their run to an almost NCAA Tournament berth, kept Tobi Lawal, and likely their best and most important addition, brought in Neoklis Avdalas as one of the most hyped international prospects in all of college basketball this season.
Charleston Southern Breakdown: Coming off a season in which Charleston Southern had two starters get injured for basically all the season, CSU still found a way to persevere and get the 7 seed, and even had Taje Kelly win Big South Player of the Year. Now Taje Kelly is gone, along with fellow starters Daylen Berry, Lamar Oden Jr and others. Saah Nimley hit the portal hard adding D2 transfers Luke Williams and Trent Coleman along with brothers Nate and Devin Brafford among others.
Game Breakdown: I expect this to end like your average buy game. I do like Charleston Southern more than their 320th KenPom rankings, and really don’t know if Virginia Tech is a Top 75 roster, despite their star Neo. I wouldn’t be shocked if CSU entered halftime up against Virginia Tech but in the end I do like Virginia Tech to pull it out.
Official Prediction: Virginia Tech 82 - Charleston Southern 67
Nov 3rd - 7pm EST - Western Illinois at Radford
Game One of the Zach Chu era begins in the Dedmon Center vs Western Illinois. This is the first time since 2006 that these two teams have faced off in which Western Illinois has won that lone matchup 75-72.
Western Illinois Breakdown: After last season, Coach Bourdreau had a really big challenge, even one bigger than Zach Chu’s. Rebuilding an ENTIRE ROSTER, even losing a transfer they gained mid way through last season in Amar Augillard who transferred to WIU but never played a game for the Leathernecks. This years roster includes Southern Indiana transfer Nick Hittle and Tyran Cook along with Idaho State transfer Isaiah Griffin and former Top 100 JUCO player Antwuan Massey.
Radford Breakdown: After Radford’s season ended in Johnson City, with the JUCO waiver, it was expected Radford would run it back with this roster, until Coach Nichols took the La Salle job. Then along came former SMU Analytics Coach Zach Chu to take over head coaching duties, but before any games were played. Coach Chu had to build a new roster with only Zion Walker returning, and a roster he built. Out bidding Clemson for Del Jones, getting Dennis Parker Jr from NC State, along with 1st Team All OVC guard Jaylon Johnson. While hitting the portal hard, Coach Chu and his staff also grabbed top freshmen Frederik Erichsen from Denmark and reclass guard Warren Keel Jr among others.
Game Breakdown: Despite the unknowns on both rosters, I do think Radford takes this game pretty handedly. Radford just has the better talent, and maybe even the better coaching depending on what we see from Zach Chu. Radford probably takes this game by 15-20.
Official Prediction: Radford 92 - Western Illinois 73
Nov 3rd - 8pm EST - Gardner Webb at Minnesota
In 2013, Niko Medved as the coach of Furman got his first win vs a D1 program. The team Niko beat, Gardner Webb with Jeremy Luther entering his first season at Gardner Webb. Now it’s 2025, Niko Medved is coaching his first Power 5 game at Minnesota as Jeremy Luther enters Year Two as the head coach at Gardner Webb, can Jeremy Luther pull off the upset, and get his first win against a Power 5 opponent as a head coach?
Minnesota Breakdown: After a heartbreaking loss to Maryland in the Sweet 16, Niko Medved got the call from Minnesota offering him the chance to coach his alma mater and Niko didn’t let that chance pass him by. For the roster in Year One, he brought Jaylen Crocker Johnson and Nehemiah Turner over from Colorado State. Cade Tyson comes over after two forgettable seasons at North Carolina along with Langston Reynolds from the other UNC (Northern Colorado) and another star guard in Chansey Willis from Western Michigan.
Gardner Webb Breakdown: After a very strong start to the season for Gardner Webb, the wheels just seemed to fall off down the stretch, but this is a new season with an almost entirely new roster. The only two returners, both freshmen from last season in Colin Hawkins and Jacob Hudson, both showed flashes in spurts last season. Coach Luther has described this roster as the best that money can’t buy, that includes Ace Talbert for St Francis, Top 150 JUCO players in Curtis Williams, Julius Clark and Ahmadou Ndiaye, along with former HM players in Spence Sims from Alabama and DJ Jefferson from Tennessee.
Game Breakdown: This is a game I will likely be keeping a close eye on, I really don’t know what to make out of either roster. They both have pretty interesting talent for their levels and both have very talented coaches, but in the end I do think Minnesota takes this one but I do think it will be close than KenPom predicts.
Official Prediction: Minnesota 81 - Gardner Webb 72
Nov 3rd - 10:30pm EST - USC Upstate at Cal Baptist
For the second year in a row, USC Upstate will play 3 games in the opening week. This year beginning on the west coast facing off against Cal Baptist, which is entering their last season in the WAC. Unsurprisingly, this is the first time these two schools have faced off their history.
Cal Baptist Breakdown: Consistently around the 150 rank in KenPom, Rick Croy has set an amazing culture at Cal Baptist and that becomes even more evident when you see that he returned his best player from last season, Dominque Daniels along with Martel Williams. Along with those two guards, they added Jayden Jackson from Northern Arizona and Chiante’ Tramble from Southern Miss.
USC Upstate Breakdown: It’s now Year Two for Coach Richter in Spartanburg, but this seem to be looking on the upward trajectory. Coach Richter was able to return a ton of his roster from last year including Kanye Jones and Breylin Garcia both coming off injuries from last season along with Carmelo Adkins and Karmani Gregory both looking to try earn All Conference honors. Along with the returning production, Upstate added Learic Davis, a high flying wing from Milwaukee and Tyler Smith fresh off a JUCO national title.
Game Breakdown: Really good nightcap game for opening night in the Big South, I do think travel plays a factor into this game but maybe not as much as another game would. Upstate has had weeks to prepare for this travel and playing this late compared to their normal games, with that being said, I still do lean Cal Baptist to take this one.
Official Prediction: Cal Baptist 80 - USC Upstate 75
Nov 4th - 7:30pm EST - UNC Asheville at Wichita State
The one and only Big South opening game not played on Nov 3rd, UNC Asheville travels to play Wichita State on Nov 4th. This is the first time these schools have faced off in their history.
Wichita State Breakdown: Led by former March Madness darling coach, Paul Mills. It has seemed the glass slipper might have fallen off for Mr Mills as last year he ended 19-15 after being 15-19 the season before. Since last year Paul Mills cleared his roster adding 9 transfers including former Radford guard Kenyon Giles, Purdue big man Will Berg. Along with Mid Major starters like Karon Boyd from ETSU and Brian Amuneke from Fresno State.
UNC Asheville Breakdown: Coming off another amazing season for Mike Morrell that ended to the hands of Winthrop last year, but good thing for Coach Morrell. He returns 3 of the best players in the Big South with Justin Wright, Kameron Taylor and Big South Preseason Player of the Year, Toyaz Solomon. Along with those 3 returners he brings in Charleston Southern transfer DJ Patrick, SC State guard Mitchell Taylor and Myles Mayfield a freshmen whom Coach Morrell has raved about all offseason.
Game Breakdown: This game just seems off to me, UNC Asheville returns a lot while Wichita State returns effectively nothing. That lack of returning pieces along with my feelings that Paul Mills isn’t a stellar coach makes me believe Mike Morrell opens the season 1-0.
Official Prediction: UNC Asheville 79 - Wichita State 72